As choices grow, which tablet should you buy?

9:15 PM,
Dec. 8, 2012

A new Apple iPad is on display. The choice used to be pretty limited, with the iPad dominating over the latecomers. But this year, the field is more even, as tablets from Apple's competitors have matured.

Written by

Edward C. Baig
USA TODAY

Not all that long ago, you couldn't imagine wanting a tablet computer. Your smartphone and laptop met all your computing requirements, or so you figured. And tablets were those awkward, stylus-driven computers that were pushed for years by Bill Gates at Microsoft, with very little to show for it.

Today, you're in crowded company if a tablet computer tops your holiday wish list. Nearly six in 10 shoppers surveyed by the PriceGrabber price-comparison site said they'd rather receive a tablet computer than a laptop. And 71 percent said that tablets would replace e-readers as gifts this year.